It was a nice break but all good things must come to an end. And what better way to get back into the groove than at a Downtown Houston Pachyderm Club weekly meeting? Especially one featuring the new Chair-elect of the Harris County Republican Party, Paul Simpson?
Even with Spring Break in full swing, there was an almost full house to hear Paul’s plans for the party. The title of his presentation was Restore and Rebuild – I won’t get into detail about it because he will be presenting it to the Senatorial convention on Saturday. He reiterated some of his campaign themes about the deterioration of the party in Harris County, emphasized how large and important Harris County is for Republicans in Texas and nationally, discussed his plans to bring high-dollar donors to the party, and briefly outlined his transition focus as follows:
- Financial – shouldn’t need money from activists or candidates
- Facilities – current headquarters is not convenient and is old, need to find a new location, continue to look for satellite offices
- Technology – stressed the need to be on par with the Democratic Party in this area
- Staffing / appointments – the Chair has between 30 and 40 appointments, he wants to be transparent and let anyone apply for the appointments, hopefully via an online application
A couple of things stood out. First is that former City of Houston Controller candidate Bill Frazer is heading the financial transition. That is very good news and Bill should be able to build enough confidence in the party so that the high-dollar donors will come on board. It should also allow Bill to gain the confidence of Republican voters should he choose to run again. A disappointment was that Phil Owens is not in line to be on the professional staff – heck, I’ve campaigned for about four years now for him to be the executive director but I suppose Phil is finally going to get his just dues in the private consulting business. Good for him and as long as he remains available to help with strategy, good for the party.
Like I said, I’m not going to comment much on the actual presentation but I did extract three questions that I thought would give you a flavor of what is to come from a Simpson administration.
First, a question from me about the Party’s traditional Joint Judicial Campaign:
Second, a question from a college student about outreach to traditional Democratic strongholds:
Last, a question about the infamous Vacancy Committee:
I think that if you take a few minutes to listen to those three questions, you’ll get a good feel for the meeting and the direction the party is headed. Other than that, it was good to be at my favorite club. You might notice that Club President Sophia Mafrige is not in the picture – she is recovering from surgery. We missed you Sophia! And we wish you a speedy recovery.
Good report and accurate. If Paul will do what he says and we back him up the party will benefit greatly!!
Thanks David, as always your kind words mean a great deal to me and as you know I consider them as a challenge to live up to your expectations ( its not easy being me).
As far as my place in the next administration Paul’s vision for the HCRP is the right one. I believe in it and I along with so many others fought for it. Replacing one consultant with another as an ensconced Executive Director is tantamount to musical chairs. That does not truly move us forward. As Paul said I will be a part of the HCRP, just not as an employee.
As far as my future, short term Paul has asked me to be part of the transition team along with Bill Frazer and others. Long term, I will work with Paul and the Party when my skills are needed as a part of the plan to build “A professional Party focused on grassroots”.
I’ve spent the better part of my life (since I was 16) working as an advocate for the Conservative cause in my hometown. That will not stop now that we have a Chair that values those skills and the admirable and extensive skills and talents of so many others both professional and activists.
I’m proud to have been a part of the Simpson campaign and proud to be part of the Simpson administration. As always I appreciate your good work and encouragement. If I ever decide to get serious about this business I should hire you as my press agent.
Great article David. I agree with your assessment of having Bill Frazier on board to oversee the finances.
He adds a great deal of credibility and this will give donors confidence in the HCRP finances. We need
transparency in all aspects of the Party’s operations and I know Paul will work hard to make that the new standard of the HCRP.
My question to Mr. Simpson is how will he work as the new Chair to secure more enthusiastic deligates to represent us as Republicans in Harris County during this upcoming election. I recently volunteered at the HCRP office, calling deligates to ask that they walk with us on March 29, 2014 and was appauled at how many either hung up on me, was quick to say they were busy on that day, to remove them from the deligate list, and some told me that they did not support the Republican Party at this time. Although, the effort to secure volunteers to walk was considered successful, I still remain concerned and want to know what Mr. Simpson will do to resolve this problem as our new Chair.